


Unexpected Supernova

by Komayeda (1ThatGuy1)



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-15
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2019-11-18 07:31:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 17,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18116171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1ThatGuy1/pseuds/Komayeda
Summary: One can't completely control a game. Even with the strictest rules, one unexpected choice can completely break it.Goro Akechi fails to kill Kunikazu Okumura. Ren Amamiya learns something sooner than he should. The game is thrown off the rails, for better and for worse.





	1. Prologue

“...I can't let this happen.” 

Goro Akechi looks on at the sunken world. The peaks of the highest buildings poked out from the blue sea, as if making a last-ditch attempt for a final gasp of air. A veritable biblical flood, swallowing all that didn’t meet the heights of that man’s standards. 

Of course, whatever religion this was, Akechi was no follower. Well, he was, but only as a means to a certain end. His father, Mayosashi Shido, was hell bent on holding the coveted seat of Prime Minister, claiming to want what was best for this country, to have it become a prosperous and powerful nation. Even without looking at his Palace, Goro Akechi knew that these claims were delusions at best, and straight up lies at worst. But as he leaned on the balcony of the massive cruise ship, he had settled on the latter. 

This was what Mayosashi Shido really thought of Japan. Only fit as a glass tank to hold enough water for his expensive boat to sail in. 

“I can’t let this happen.” Akechi muttered to himself. “I’ll have to kill him before he causes this much dama-” 

“Er, sir?” 

Akechi quickly and nervously turns around to see a man wearing a formal white shirt and vest, as well as a magenta butterfly-esque mask. 

“Your tea is ready.” 

He gestures to a cart to his side that he’d evidentially been pushing, an ornate tea cup giving off a light steam on a saucer sitting on top of it. 

“Ah, sorry.” Akechi said politely, returning to the beach chair he’d been sitting on throughout most of his time in the Palace tonight. “I was just lost in thought for a second.” 

“Oh, that’s perfectly fine.” says the suited man in a jovial manner. “It’s only natural to get lost in the beauty of the sea.” 

Akechi’s teeth gritted ever so slightly as the man set his tea on the small table next to his chair and left. 

 _The beauty of the ocean, huh? This is how they all see it? ...disgusting._  

Needless to say, the detective was not here to soak in the sights, at least not exclusively. The image of a flooded city is a great motivator, but it honestly wasn’t his highest priority. No, this was part of another day of staking the place out, learning how to traverse the thing. Of course, there’s a reason that this wasn’t his first visit: simply mentally mapping out all of those god-forsaken mouse mazes had left him finding out what it felt like for mice to bang their heads against walls repeatedly.  

And after all of that work, he had found that the only place that Shido could be was through the door at the end of the central passage. Said door required five invitations to pass through.

And Akechi, Shido’s flesh-and-blood son, as well as his main enforcer, wasn't given a single one.  

The crow clenches his fist, muttering to himself. “He even gives that Yakuza bastard an invite before giving me one.” 

He then consciously loosens his hand. He reminds himself that there will be plenty of time to express his rage when plummeting the ship’s captain from his lofty heights. Akechi reaches for his tea and takes a sip to calm his nerves. 

 _Ah, tea. Without you, I’d have snapped a long time ago..._  

 _…_  

 _...what the hell am I even saying!? This is fucking imaginary tea! This won’t calm me at all!_  

His phone suddenly starts to buzz. The detective shakily puts down the tea and yanks his phone out. 

It’s a text from Shido. Akechi took a second to ponder again at the fact that Shido’s head has adequate cell reception, then looked at it. 

| Shido: They sent the card. Put the next step into motion tomorrow. 

 _Blunt as always, I see._  

| Akechi: Understood. Okumura will die. 

He put his phone back in his pocket and sighed. At least he was getting closer to that fateful moment when he could stab him in the back.  

For now, all he could do was wait and think of the only thing that keeps him happy in the short term. 

 _He has no idea that I keep going here._  

It may have been the fact that this would make the look on Shido’s face when he eventually betrayed him. Or it may have been the childish rebelliousness of going somewhere you’re not allowed. Either way, Akechi got out of his chair and started to walk back to the rear of the ship. 

“Alright. I’ve got work to do."


	2. Sweatshop

“There’s one more thing you need to tell us. Have you seen this criminal’s face before?” 

The metal floor begins to shake. The Phantom Thieves turn their heads in shock, as the spaceport palace begins its inevitable collapse. The shadow of Kunikazu Okumura kneels nearly motionless on the ground, despite everything. 

Skull reacts in alarm. “We don’t got time to get that outta him!” 

“We’ll just have to inquire about it in the real world.” responds Queen. 

The group begins to run back the way they came, satisfied that they were able to accomplish their latest heist, even if they hadn’t gotten as much as they hoped. 

Well, most of the group. 

“C’mon Joker, this place is gonna collapse!” Panther calls out to the pondering figure. 

The thieves leader seemed to be deep in thought, his right hand rubbing his chin. 

“...or maybe...we don’t have to wait that long...” 

“What are you saying!?” Fox frantically exclaims. “We don’t have the ti-” 

“Then we’ll have to make some. Prepare another seat Mona. We’re taking him with us.” 

Morganna’s eyes widen in disbelief. “W-wait a sec, we can’t do that! Taking a shadow out of their palace is risky!” 

“Then we’ll just have to drop him off near the entrance. We can interrogate him on the way there. After the absolute hell we’ve gone through in this god-forsaken palace, we’re not ending it off on a cliffhanger.” 

The kneeling spaceman’s head swings up. “W-w-wait, hold on! I’m... I’m not quite sure how I feel about thi-PWOOOH!” 

Queen plants a fist straight up into his gut. As he collapses into her arms, she hoists the barely conscious man onto her shoulder. 

“Get the van ready. We’re going to have to make it quick.” 

Mona sighs. “Well, this had better work, or else I’m gonna move our leader’s bedtime back an hour.” 

The thieves rush towards him as he transforms into the black van, and quickly get into their seats, with Joker and Noir taking the front two, Panther, Fox, and Oracle taking the three in the middle, and Okumura being flanked in the back seats by Queen and Skull. 

“Now hang on everyone,” Ren says to the back. “This place is confusing, so I may have to improvise a bit.” 

As he faces forward, Joker mutters something under his breath. 

“I apologize in advance Mona.” 

The passengers could swear that they felt the van shake a little. 

* * *

“Heh. Everything should be in place.” 

The plan had been set up months in advance. There’s no way anything could go wrong. The man in the black mask was ready to fulfil his part. Kunikazu Okumura would be there, most likely a sobbing mess after his treasure had been stolen. Perfectly vulnerable to a gunshot to the back of the head. 

Goro Akechi strolls into the open area, a smirk under his mask, and his gun at the ready. After this, the CEO will be granted a live audience to his tragic and unfortunate death, courtesy of his father’s media connections. The calling card sent by the Phantom Thieves of Hearts will be found in his building, clearly implicating them as the culprits. And all the trust and glory that the public granted them would be left in shambles. 

...and then, he realizes something. 

 _...wait...why isn’t he_ _here?_

A weight begins to form in his stomach. He frenetically scans the area again. 

_...w-why the hell isn’t he here!?_

Akechi looks again. And again. And again. Okumura’s still nowhere to be found. 

_... sh -shit... he’s supposed to be here! He’s supposed to be here! WHY THE HELL ISN’T HE HERE!?_

His breathing becomes harder to control, as he paces the area in a panic. He closes his eyes and opens them, in the hopes that this is just a dream, or the shadow will just spontaneously appear in front of him, anything but what was happening right now. 

But everything is the same. Kunikazu Okumura was not where he was supposed to be. 

* * *

  
“So, I’m thinkin’ you should probably spill the beans. Who’s behind all this?” 

The barrel of Ryuji’s shotgun was pressed up against the glass of Okumura’s helmet. The sweaty blue-skinned personification was in considerable and understandable distress. 

“H-hold on, wait! I can’t just tell you that! Do you have any idea of what he’d do to me!?” 

Makoto grips his hand from the other side. “Do  _you_ have any idea of what we could do? I'll tell you that Skull’s trigger finger isn’t the most stable, especially given how bumpy this ride is going.” 

“Hey, my finger’s plenty stable!” Skull interjects indignantly. 

“And my driving’s not  _that_  bad!” Joker exclaims from the driver’s seat. 

“I BEG TO DIFFEEEEEEER!” yells Mona, as he flies through another airlock. 

Queen sighs. “That’s not the point!” 

Oracle raises her hand. “If it helps any, I could hack into his Twitter account and retweet a buncha porn.” 

“It’s n-not like that!” Kunikazu exclaims. “If I rat him out, he could hurt Haru!” 

The whole van goes silent, except for the screeching and bouncing of its tires. 

That silence lasts for around five seconds before Noir points her grenade launcher towards the back seat, a dissonant smile on her face. 

“Please don’t let your daughter become an orphan.” 

“I SWEAR TO GOD NOIR, IF YOU BLOW UP MY INSIDES I WILL NEVE-” 

“IT WAS S-SHIDO!” 

This next block of silence lasts twice as long. 

It’s broken by a shocked Panther. “W-wait, did you just say... S-Shiho...?” 

“NO, SHI _DO_! WITH THE DO SOUND!” 

Ann wipes her brow. “Oh... sorry about that, I kinda misheard and well, ya know...” 

Joker speaks up from the front. “Hold on, tell us more about this Shido person.” 

Shaking with fear, the CEO explains. “M-Masayoshi Shido! He’s that politician that’s been everywhere on TV lately! Bald, goatee, glasses, you can’t miss him!” 

“Hmm. The name and description do sound familiar,” Fox contemplates. “He should be easy to find.” 

Haru lowers her weapon. “Thank you, father. We promise to stop him before he hurts anyone else.” 

“Y-you don’t know what you’re dealing with!” the shadow shouts. “The courts, the media, the police, yakuza, assassins... he controls them all!” 

Joker hits the breaks, and the van screeches to a halt. “I guess we’ll just have to keep that in mind then. In the meantime, this should be your stop. Ryuji? Mona?” 

“On it.” 

“W-with pleasure.” 

The back trunk opens up as Ryuji throws Kunikazu Okumura out into the Export Line area. 

“Looks like you’re gonna be... er...” 

Skull couldn’t think of a witty burger-related one-liner in time before the van speeds off, leaving the shadow behind. 

“It’s alright Skull,” Yusuke consoles. “I couldn’t come up with a pun either.” 

“On the bright side,” Futaba says happily, “we’ve got ourselves a lead!” 

Ren chuckles to himself. “See? I told ya this would work.” 

* * *

“SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!” 

Goro Akechi was sweating profusely, and beside himself in despair. The whole spaceport was collapsing around him, yet he still had absolutely no clue where Okumura even was. 

 _The Phantom Thieves didn’t kill him, did they!? Of course not; if they would, I wouldn’t be here in the first place! The spaceship’s still here, so he didn’t have any time to take off! The treasure’s not here either, so those bastards probably took care of that already, but... wait, did they take Okumura too?_  

 _WHY THE FUCK WOULD THEY DO THAT!? THEY COULDN’T HAVE POSSIBLY KNOWN THAT I’D BE HERE! I-_  

Akechi’s thoughts were interrupted by a large chunk of metal falling five around feet away from him, causing his already tense mental state to be rattled even more. 

“...I...th-this place is about to collapse. I... can’t stay here... I have to...” 

The plan wasn’t just in shambles. It had pretty much disintegrated. The only shot Akechi had at taking out Okumura misfired. Kunikazu’s palace would collapse, his heart stolen, but his shadow still alive. In around two days, he would confess everything, including who was behind the mental shutdowns. And Shido... he’d be downright apoplectic.  

Goro Akechi couldn’t salvage any of this. He pulled out his phone, pulled up the navigator app, and made it send him out into the real world. 

He had no idea what he’d do once he got there. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, finally got this started up!  
> With all the Persona news coming up, and my other fanfiction reaching a good stopping point, I thought this would be the best time to get this thing going!  
> So, just in case, I'm gonna say that this follows the plot of the original Persona 5. If Persona 5 The Royal changes anything, it's not gonna be reflected in this fic.  
> Also, I'm really glad that I get to work on a more focused story, and work within tighter canon limits. I can't wait to write this, and I hope you all enjoy this as well! Thanks for reading!


	3. Get Some Sleep

Sojiro Sakura looks up from the dish he’s been cleaning at the sound of the bell above the door. Ren Amamiya strolls in, looking a little exhausted, but otherwise content. 

“You’re back.” 

“Yep.” 

“Ya seem tired, so I’ll take care of closing up tonight. Get some rest.” 

“Thanks. Will do.” 

Ren begins to walk up the stairs to the attic when he hears the tell-tale jingle of his phone. He reaches into his right pocket and looks at the screen. 

|Ann: So, I’ve been thinking back on whole interrogation. 

|Yusuke: Yes? Did you catch something? 

|Ann: Well, something’s been bugging me for a while, but I didn’t realize what it was until then. 

|Ann: We know lots of people with “Shi” in their names, don’t we? 

|Ryuji: Holy shit, you’re right. 

|Ann: I know, it’s crazy! There’s Shiho, Mishima, 

|Ryuji: Kamoshida, Kaneshiro, 

|Yusuke: Yoshida, Shido, 

|Futaba: Yeah, that looks really confusing. 

|Ren: Agreed. Looks like we’re gonna have to kill Mishima to avoid confusion. 

|Makoto: That aside, I think we need to discuss our next move now that we have a lead. 

|Ryuji: I mean, do we have to do that tonight? We busted our asses out there. 

|Ren: I agree. Either way, we’re going to have check if our current target’s heart’s changed before we move on to another. 

|Yusuke: Speaking of which, Haru, have you noticed him acting differently since this morning? 

|Haru: Well, he hasn’t been talking much. He’s mostly been in his study. 

|Makoto: That could mean lots of things, but it’s a good sign.  

|Yusuke: Exactly. Madarame acted similarly before he confessed. 

|Ryuji: Oh yeah! There’s a chance that the guy could tell everyone who’s behind the shutdowns! 

|Ren: Hold on. Haru, if he’s arrested for this, you may have to live alone for a while. Are you sure you’ll be able to make it like that? 

|Haru: I’ll be fine. I still have plenty of resources, so I should be able to make it on my own. My main concern, however, is that the deadline for me being married off is close at hand. 

|Ryuji: Yeah. We’re gonna have to hope he confesses before then. 

|Futaba: Well, there’s no use in worrying about it tonight especially since we’re all drained of SP. 

|Ann: Well, she’s right about the drained part. I think we all deserve a bit of rest. 

|Ryuji: Yeah. I’ve gotta meet up with Mishido tomorrow. 

|Makoto: Do you... wanna say that again? 

|Ryuji: I mean Mishima. 

|Ryuji: Shit 

|Futaba: Ah, yet another Shi word 

|Ryuji: Shut up, I’m tired 

Ren puts away his phone and walks up to his room. A nap certainly did sound good to him after all that. 

“So...” 

Morganna jumps out of Ren’s bag and onto his bed, looking at him expectantly.  

 _Ah. I can’t believe I almost_ _forgot._

“I’m... sorry for... driving you crazy back there.” 

“Ay, that’s a good one!” 

He pushes up his glasses. “Naturally.” 

“But seriously, it’s alright. I was just gonna say... I’m sorry if I’ve been a bit of a pain lately.” 

“It’s fine. We should’ve paid more attentio-” 

“No, it’s not. I’ve been putting you all down ever since we became a team. I’ve talked down to Ryuji, I may have been kinda creepy towards Lady Ann, I keep telling you to go to slee-” 

“Oh, I'm actually glad you keep doing that.” 

The cat’s eyes had widened considerably. “...wait, really?” 

“Yeah, it turns out that those early bedtimes work _really_ well for me. I would’ve kept falling asleep in class if you hadn’t given me such a good schedule.” 

“Um... well... ya know what, that’s not the point! I’ve... I’ve been so wrapped up in becoming human, that I forgot what kind of human I wanna be. And... and I’m sorry. I’m gonna try and be better from now on.” 

Ren gives a warm smile. “You’re gonna make a great human.” 

“Thanks.” Morganna gives the same. “Now, it’s getting kinda late isn’t it? I think we should ge-” 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it.” 

And so, the leader of the Phantom Thieves tucks himself into bed, having made so much progress, not only through the void that was this mystery, but with his friends as well. After all of that, he expects warm dreams tonight. 

* * *

"Get up, inmate!” 

His expectations aren’t always correct. 

He sits up from the suddenly uncomfortable bed to witness some familiar steel bars, as well as three familiar figures. 

“Our master wishes to speak with you,” Justine says softly. 

“So get up and make yourself at least partially presentable!” Caroline says not so softly. 

“Alright, I’m...getting up,” replies the trickster wearily as he does so. 

The long-nosed man in the middle of the circular room outside his cell finally addresses him. “So Trickster, how was today’s job?” 

“...I’d assume that you’d already know.” 

“Oh, and I do. I’m merely asking for your opinion.” 

Ren nonchalantly rests a hand against the bar. “Well, I’d have to say it went pretty well. We stole our target’s treasure and found out who’s been masterminding these mental shutdowns. We’re one step closer to ending this madness.” 

Igor lets out a small chuckle. “Ever the optimist, aren’t you? The rehabilitation seems to be going well then. Nevertheless, it is not a wholly positive trait.” 

“...well, I guess I’ll keep that optimism up by asking what you mean, and hope that you don’t brush it off like always.” 

 “I’m this close inmate!” Caroline sternly interjects. “Don’t try your luck!” 

“All that I am saying is that your unexpected choice, to put everything at risk chase down that lead immediately, is not going to push this game forward at a quicker pace.” Igor explains, his ever present smile not giving any emotions away. “This knowledge that you were not supposed to carry could be quite the burden. And your successes... well, they can give even more drive to those that have failed.” 

* * *

  
|Shido: Did you accomplish your mission? 

Goro Akechi had been staring at his phone for the last twenty minutes. He did not have an answer yet. 

As he sat on a bench near the outside of Okumura Foods, which he had not left even now that night had fallen, he could only peruse his limited options. 

_So, if I tell him I haven’t, he’s going to get angry at me. That’s a certainty. In addition, Okumura’s security is top notch, and people with stolen hearts aren’t the most likely to venture too far outside of it. And since his palace had collapsed, we can’t take him out through the metaverse either. We won’t be able to stop him before he comes out and fingers Shido as the man behind these mental shutdowns._

_And if I tell him I have, he’ll be satisfied. And then when he realizes that I haven’t when Okumura confesses, which I’ve already explained that we can’t stop, he’s going to get angry at me. So it’s basically the same  thing._

_...GODDAMMIT! TODAY WASN’T SUPPOSED TO GO LIKE  THIS!_

|Shido: Don’t make me repeat myself. 

Akechi’s grip on the phone tightened, his hands shaking even more. He inhales sharply. He had to give an answer, or Shido would get suspicious. He put his fingers to the phone, and let whatever god would be by his side take the wheel. 

|Akechi: Yes. 

The detective violently exhales. He did it. He lied to Shido. Now everything would be terrible in a slightly different way. Perfect. 

…   
  
|Shido: Excellent.

Akechi buries his head in his hands. 

 _All of  the work I put in...  all of  the planning, the achieving, the goddamn pandering! And it all... it all just collapses! For no fucking reason! I._ _.._

His fingers begin clutching his scalp even harder. 

“...it’s their fault...” 

In all the confusion, he’d almost forgotten. He now knew who the Phantom Thieves were now. He saw them as they were entering the palace.  

 _It was... Ren_ _Amamiya . That kid that hangs around LeBlanc. And... Yusuke Kitagawa, the pupil of  Ichiryusai   Madarame . Then there was  Sae’s  sister, Makoto. Haru Okumura,  Kunikazu’s  daughter. And... three others. I don't know who they are, but I'm sure I’ll found out more after doing some_ _digging..._

_...this is all their  fault!_

_This whole situation is unsalvageable. But I can at least mitigate some of the damage, and make sure it never happens  again!_

The assassin stands up and walks away in a quiet storm of anger. 

_They’re going to pay for getting in my way!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad that I'm building up enough energy to post multiple chapters in this short of a timespan. Working on a more focused story within the constraints of an established universe is really fun, and I'm excited to write more! Anyways, thanks for reading!


	4. Cosmic Tower

Ren descends the stairs, yawning to himself as he walks to the café's ground floor. 

He hears Sojiro’s familiar deep voice. “Mornin’.” 

“Good morning,” Ren replies mid-stretch. 

“Good morning Ren.” says Akechi, cheerfully sipping coffee from his seat at the bar. 

… 

Ren blinks twice.  

_...what is he doing here?_

He silently takes a seat two stools away from him. Sojiro, having already prepared breakfast, sets a plate of curry and a coffee in front of the boy, who gladly digs in. 

Well, as close to gladly as he could while feeling the eyes of the detective directly on his skin. 

“So, er... what brings you here so early?”, he asks Akechi as nonchalantly as he could manage. 

“Oh, I’ve just got a busy day ahead of me, so I thought I would get a head start.” 

“I see. You haven't made a breakthrough on that whole Phantom Thieves case, have you?” 

“Well, I can’t well give any of that away,” he says with a warm smile. “For all we know, they could be listening right now.” 

“Hmm... that may actually be the case.” Ren glares forward. “Isn’t that right... Sojiro?” 

“Well, I wouldn’t say I’m past the age to steal hearts,” the barista says with a wry smile, “but the victims weren’t exactly my type.” 

Akechi giggles softly. “Well, I guess we’ll find out eventually.” 

After a bit more conversation, Ren finishes his meal and grabs his bag. 

“Well, I’m gonna be heading out. Good luck with your investigation.” 

“Thank you. Enjoy your day!” 

_Hmm. He was able to deflect my probing. He knows I’m onto him, but whether it’s as a detective or the culprit behind the shutdowns, I’m not sure. Either way, I’ll have to tail him to find out  more._

“Morganna, we’re going!” 

“Hang on, I’m coming down!” 

Akechi looks towards the stairs to the attic to see a black cat leap down them and jump into Ren’s bag. 

“So, what are our plans for today?” it says as the two walk out the door. 

Akechi stares at the door, his eyes wide. 

_...d-did that cat just talk!?_

“Are you, er, okay there?” 

He turns back to Sojiro. “Oh, well... I was actually thinking of leaving for work soon.” He stands up from his chair and makes his way to the door. 

“Well, that’s fine. Thanks for stopping by.” 

“Thank you!” 

As he walks out to the Yongen-Jaya streets, he looks to his left to see the Phantom Thief walking along the path, inexplicably talking the cat in his bag. 

_...well, if I wasn’t following this guy before, I’m definitely doing it  now._

_...seriously, how the hell is that cat talking!?_

* * *

Goro Akechi didn’t expect that he'd be going to Big Bang Burger today. 

He also didn’t expect Ren Amamiya, the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, to be staring down the biggest hamburger he’d ever seen. 

Looking from a booth outside of the challenger’s view, he overheard the voice of the... cat... from earlier. 

“Are you sure about this?” 

“Of course I am,” Ren replies. “We’ve already taken down their boss. Finishing this challenge will be the last nail in their coffin.” 

With much difficulty, he grasps the huge stack of meat, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese, and awkwardly tries to get at least some of it in his mouth. 

The detective puts his arms behind his head, intending to wait out this absurd display of dominance, or whatever it was supposed to be. 

 _Killing these people in the real world won’t work. I've already given up on asking the conspiracy for help, especially since nothing will make them trust me when Shido’s name becomes public. And there’s no way I can take care of them quickly on my own._  

“C’mon, you can do it! 

 _In addition, a mental shutdown would be impossible. Personas protect their users from things like shadows and palaces, so their minds are pretty much off-limits. And so, that leaves one last place where the Phantom Thieves are active and open to be killed._  

 _And that place is Mementos._  

“Be sure to remember to space your drinks! 

 _It’s a longshot, but if the Phantom Thieves access mementos, I can wait for and ambush them. Unfortunately, Mementos is a big place, and just running into them is nigh impossible._   _Therefore,_ _the best course of action is to find out exactly where they’re going, then converging._  

 _Accordingly, that would be one of their targets._  

 _If he finds a name that I could use, then I can track them all down and kill them._  

“You need to push on! It was your decision to start this, and you have to end it!” 

 _SHUT UP YOU GODDAMN FURBALL, I’M TRYING TO THINK!_  

 _...alright, calm down Goro. You just... need to think for a second..._  

 _...speaking of which, why_ is _that cat talking? No one else is noticing it but me and him... could it be related to the metaverse?_  

 _It feels like I’ve been here for ages... when is he going to finish?_  

Akechi looks back to the eating boy. He’s about a fourth of the way done. 

... _I am so tired..._  

* * *

 

Ren holds his new Captain’s Badge, a satisfied smile on his face. 

 _Finally. It is done._  

“I honestly didn’t think you could do it, but you proved me wrong! Way to go!” 

“Of course I could do it.” he said to the cat in his bag. “It's me, remember?” 

He then doubles over onto the restaurant floor. 

“Joker! Are you okay!?” 

“...I think... I’m gonna be... in the restroom for a bit...” 

Morganna nods his head in stern agreement. “Okay. I’ll guard your stuff while you get that thing out of your system.” 

“Th-thanks. I’ll try to... make it quick.” 

As he stumbles to the bathroom, Goro Akechi puts a hand to his head. 

 _...killing you is going to be satisfying, Ren Amamiya. So, so, satisfying._  
   
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What seems to be a common theme in my work is exasperation. I have no idea why, but I love it. So yeah, the plot's finally gonna get moving in the next chapter, where things finally reach the point where the plot goes completely off the rails from the game's canon. I can't wait to get to that, but since college finals are coming up, it may take a bit to get done. Anyways, thanks for reading!


	5. The Details in the Devil

“So, is anyone available?” 

“...nope.” 

The duo sit on a bench in Shibuya, Ren looking at his phone with Morgana watching it from the top of the seat. 

“...c’mon, there's gotta be  _something_  we could do. Maybe we could go work at the flower shop again?” 

“...you lost me at work.” 

“...there’s the arcade?” 

“I’m not really in the mood to look at flashing images right now.” 

“We could play the crane game.” 

“Morgana, a man’s interest cannot be sustained by a simple crane game for more than three, maybe four minutes.” 

Morgana lets out a sigh. “Well, I guess all that we can do is head home and... sleep maybe?” 

Looking utterly dejected, Ren pushes himself off of the bench. 

“As much as I hate it, I think that’s our only option. Maybe I could get some studying in too.” 

The cat hops into his bag as he begins to walk away. 

Meanwhile, the man tailing him begins to shake with rage. 

_...are you serious!? Was this whole thing just a waste of time!? Did I just watch a man eat a giant hamburger, then take the longest shit-slash- throwup  session, all for nothing!?_

...and then, Amamiya stops walking. 

Akechi does as well. The emotions behind his shaking switch from anger to fear.  

 _...if he sees me, is there any way I can play this off as coincidence? He thinks I should be at work. What’s my explanation for being here? Do I even have one? Why the hell didn’t I plan for this!?_  

...Ren takes out his phone. 

|Ohya: I'm having some trouble... with Kayo’s case. 

|Ohya: And I’m not sure how to handle it... Could we talk? 

A relieved smile begins to form on his lips. “Morgana, it looks like we’re not going home just yet.” 

Mona’s head pokes out of the blue bag. “Who rang?” 

“Ohya needs help. Looks like we’re off to Shinjuku.” 

“...have you given any thought to my idea?” 

“Morgana, I seriously doubt that Lala’s gonna be okay with setting out a cat bowl full of liquor for you,” Ren says, eyes closed in disaproval. 

“I mean, we have no idea how old I really am. For all we know, I’m way past drinking age!” 

“That... that’s not the point. She’s not even going to have a cat bowl.” 

“So maybe we could stop by the store and buy one for he-” 

“No. We are not doing that.” 

“Aw c’mon, it’s only a little...” 

As the two bickering souls walk off into the distance, Akechi nervously smirks. 

 _Alright. I’m not out of this yet._  

* * *

 

 _...it's a bar..._  

 _..._ _of course_ _it’s a bar..._  

The detective stands outside of Crossroads, having just witnessed his target walk through the front door. He stares at it anxiously. 

 _By the shape of it, the entryway is narrow. If someone walks in, they’ll be seen by someone. If minor high-school detective prodigy Goro_ _Akechi_ _were to walk into this shady back-alley_ _okama_ _bar, he’d be seen by the whole world. He’d probably lose his job, his public image, and most importantly, his chance at brutal revenge._  

 _...was this planned? Is he doing all of this just to throw me off his trail?_  

 _...have I been outmatched from the start?_  

Akechi’s fist clenches in irritation. The night was drawing near, and what did he have? A talking cat. Which was a surprisingly worthless development given his circumstances.  

He walks away from the bar, utterly defeated. Every single avenue he’d been taking was ending in failure. There was nothing else he could do but curse the world and hope his death wouldn’t be painful. 

 _...no. What am I doing? Why am I caring about subtlety when I’m going to be punished anyways? I can't let all this end before taking that asshole with me!_  

His head instinctively turns to the left to see someone sitting down in the nearby alley.  

 _Yeah, this could work._  

The detective looks around him, checking to see if anyone was watching, then slinks into the alleyway, cautiously pacing towards the man. He’s a scruffy but well-built old man with a thick grey head of hair, matched with an even thicker grey beard. From the state of him, he’s likely homeless. 

Goro reaches into his pocket and pulls out a 5000 yen bill. 

“Excuse me, I need your help.” 

The old man looks up with kindly eyes. 

“You look troubled. Is there something wrong?” 

“...I won’t deny that there is. I'd really appreciate your assistance.” 

The man gets to his feet. “Well, I can try my best for ya.” 

Akechi’s eyes brighten up in gratitude. “Thank you so much. Now, I need you to buy a drink at Crossroads. There’s a boy with black hair and glasses in there. If you hear him mention or hear a specific name, remember it. When you’re done, I’ll be waiting here to hear it. Understood?” 

The old man chuckles. “Anything I can do to help, I gladly will.” 

He takes the money and heads towards the bar, leaving behind a panting, sweat-covered Akechi in the alley. 

_This is my last shot. I need to hope that he doesn’t expect this._

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the old man returns. 

“Shinpei Honjo.” 

Akechi, tapping his foot in anticipation, looks towards the homeless man. 

“That’s the name?” 

“I’m pretty sure it is. The kid was pretty specific in asking about it. Funny thing, I’ve seen that kid walking in the Shibuya train station a lot. He seems like a nice yo-” 

“Yes, that’s nice. I’m sorry I can’t stay and chat, but I need to hurry. You can keep the change.” 

“...revenge isn’t something to fret over so much.” 

Akechi is halfway out of the alley when he hears him say it. 

“...what exactly do you mean by that?” 

“Believe me, I understand the need for retribution. But letting it consume you... making your whole life revolve around it... it’s no good for anyone, ya know?” 

Goro’s right hand involuntarily begins to shake. “Why are you saying that?” 

“Oh, I just thought I saw something in your eyes. Saw it back in the war too. Trust me, you’re not gonna like where it leads you.” 

The detective walks out the alley in complete silence. Once out, he takes his phone out of his pocket, powering it on and tapping the red-eyed square that was the Navigator App. 

“Shinpei Honjo” 

It’s a match. The shadow’s located in the Kaitul area. It would be a long ways down for the average person. It would be even longer for the extremely anxious Goro Akechi. But he planned to go out swinging.  

He spots Ren Amamiya leaving the bar. His eyes were blocked by the moonlight reflecting off his glasses, but his stride was determined. 

_Hmph. The smug bastard. Everything he put me through today and yesterday is one thing for sure, but the fact that he seriously thinks that he can truly change people’s hearts... it’s childish. And this child... he’s been outsmarting me at every turn. I’ll admit, though, that his resolve to do this all despite the risk is somewhat admirable... fine then!_

Goro Akechi straightens his posture and stops his shaking, turning back in the direction of the train station. 

“Ren Amamiya... tomorrow, I’ll show you the extent of my resolve. The Phantom Thieves will fall. This, I promise.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, this should be the last chapter we spend in the real world for a bit. My hardest finals are pretty much done, so things should move a bit faster from now on. Next time, we finally get our confrontation between the Detective Prince and the Phantom Thieves, and I am so excited to get to it! Thank you all for reading!


	6. Target Spotted

|Ann: So, any update on your dad, Haru? 

|Haru: Nothing has changed. He’s still quite withdrawn. 

|Haru: Are you sure we did this right? 

|Ryuji: Don’t worry, we’ve done this before. I’m absolutely positive that everything’s gonna work out. 

|Haru: I know that. It’s just that the deadline is coming up the day after tomorrow, so I’m a bit on edge. 

|Ren: Every single one of our previous targets confessed right on the day of our deadlines. I promise you that it’s going to be the same here. 

|Haru: Thanks. So, in the meantime, do you think we could all just do something as a group if we’re not busy? 

|Ren: Well, I do have a lead on another Mementos target if we feel up to it. 

|Makoto: I can be there. 

|Yusuke: As can I. 

|Futaba: Of course I’ll go. 

|Ryuji: I’d be down for it. 

|Ann: Sure thing. 

|Haru: Focusing on fighting shadows may help me take my mind off this. Thank you. 

|Ren: No problem. 

He closes the phone. Ren puts his hands in between the back of his head and the pillow he rests on. Staring at the ceiling, he begins to think.   
 _Igor said that those who have failed will have even more drive. Was he talking about Shido? I mean, I could understand that, if it weren’t for the fact that his name will be exposed to the world._

 _...then again, what if he’s right? Is my optimism just blinding me? Could he have a way even out of this?_    
 _“_ Ren?”

Morgana stares intently from atop the workbench at the clearly awake Ren. 

“Yeah, I’ll be getting to be-” 

“ No, that’s not... I’m just wondering if you’re doing okay. You seem worried.”

“...it’ll be fine. Just thinking some things over.” 

“Well, if you say so. Still, if you need anything, remember that you’re not alone.” 

A warm smile forms on the leader’s face. “Thanks for lookin’ out for me. I’m gonna be fine for tonight.” 

“Sounds good. Now, we’ve got a big day tomorrow, so-” 

“I’m on it. G'night.” 

“Sleep well.” 

Ren pulls up his blanket and closes his eyes. 

 _...well, either way, the good news is that I don’t have to worry about it now. If our target confesses at the right time, we’ll just have to fight through anything he puts in our way._    
 _Until then, it’s just another routine Mementos job._

* * *

The next day, Goro  Akechi  stands ready  at the entrance of  Mementos.

He decided to wear white today. While the Black Mask suit was useful for intimidation and secrecy, those weren’t things he was really concerned with at the moment. When he sees the life fade from their eyes, he wanted the Phantom Thieves to know exactly who they were dealing with. 

Putting a hand to the right edge of his red and birdlike mask, he dramatically rips it off. 

“LOKI!” 

The slender black-and-white figure appears before him, menacingly posing as it usually does. 

“Alright, let’s find ourselves a ride.” 

Akechi steps down onto the tracks and begins the journey on foot. 

For how much time he spent here, getting around wasn’t an easy task. Mementos was a big place,and traversing it in a quick and easy manner would be nigh impossible on foot, especially to an area as deep as Kaitul. Some sort of transportation is required, and while both Robin Hood and Loki were relatively powerful Personas, neither of them could turn into a car. 

He stops walking. The man in the crow’s mask could faintly hear the sound of multiple paws getting closer by the second. He turns towards the noise. 

 _...interesting._  

It was  definitely a  shadow, and a big one at that. A white lion-like creature with a snake-like tail, rushing towards the white-clad man with an animalistic intensity.

_You don’t normally see a Cerberus this high up. Is this some sort of omen? Nevertheless, this will do just fine._  

Loki poses in front of its master, bending its pelvis out while extending its pointer finger at the charging shadow.

_“_ Loki! Dominate this creature! Call of Chaos!” 

Loki swishes his hand in front of the beast, causing a pillar of fluid shadows to erupt around it. The Cerberus skids to a halt, gritting its teeth. The shadows overwhelm it, turning it’s snow-white fur into a darker black. Its head hangs low, as it sinks under the weight of a massive headache. 

It’s at this point that  Akechi  himself takes initiative. The detective sprints towards the beast and hoists himself onto its back. The beast roars out in pain and anger as  Akechi  grips its fur. After a solid minute of struggling, the  shadow relents to his will and stops, kneeling its head once more. 

Akechi kicks the side of his new steed, urging it in the general direction of the escalator to the next floor. As his , his thoughts were taken up by nothing but resolve and revenge. 

 _Phantom Thieves! You’re all going to pay for messing with me!_  

* * *

“I found her naïve passion to be so annoying. It reminds me of all that pain I felt in the past. Back in the past, before I gave up. Before my passion rotted away and my wife cheated on me...” 

The shadow of Shinpei  Honjo  disappears into a plume of light, leaving behind a glowing levitating orb. 

“Alright gang, that should be it.” Joker says, as he grabs the orb, which turns into a few blank cards in his hand. 

“...it is? But it was just getting good!” Oracle complains. “I wanna know what happened with the wife!” 

“Well, he did end that story rather abruptly.” Panther states in agreement. 

Yusuke chimes in, “All of that build-up just to be cut off. How disappointing.” 

“Like you’d know.” 

A voice dripping with contempt emanates from behind them. As the team turn back towards the entrance, they see a figure standing by the entrance that they never expected to see.

The Phantom Thieves have faced plenty of surprises before. They've seen a kindly old man turn out to be a fraud and a murderer. They’ve seen an average high school turn into a giant medieval castle.

They’ve seen a cat turn into a bus. 

And yet, those events had context, build-up. They made actual sense. 

Well, the bus still didn’t make sense, but that’s not the point. 

Goro Akechi just showed up out of nowhere, in the middle of a routine job in Mementos, wearing an odd red-and-white ensemble, complete with a mask. No one really knew what to think of this. Makoto just stands there, a blank look on her face. Yusuke puts his hand to his chin, attempting, and failing, to comprehend this turn of events. Ryuji, thinking this was just all a weird dream, checks to see if he forgot to put on clothes, which he had not. 

After a long awkward silence, it’s finally broken by Haru. 

“...aren’t you that detective that’s always on TV?”

Akechi  lets out a deep sigh. He had obviously not thought this through well enough.

“Fine. Before I kill you, I will explain everything.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been a while. I recently left college for Summer Break, and had to settle back into my house. This chapter's probably gonna be the last relatively comedic one for a bit, as the next one is the point when things go from slightly off the rails to veering completely away from 'em. In fact, the hardest part about this chapter was that first meeting, since I had to judge how this whole comedic/serious balance fell. Anyways, next chapter may be a while as well, due to more precise plotting being required, but I'm hoping it's sooner rather than later. Until then, thanks for reading!


	7. Blood of Villain

“...hold on a sec, what'd you just say!?” alarmedly questions Ryuji. 

“You heard me, Ryuji Sakamoto. You’re all going to die here by my hand.” 

“You’d really go that far? Aren’t you supposed to be an officer of the law!?” Makoto sternly asks. 

Akechi  smirks. “I’m afraid you misunderstand. The law is in... a precarious place right now. Especially given that it’s under the control of a certain individual. You may have heard the name... Masayoshi Shido?”

Ann steps back in shock. “Wait, so... you’re working for him!?” 

“Well, you could look at it like that from a certain viewpoint. I’d prefer to think that I’m... blessing him with my presence.” 

Morgana puts a paw to the side of his head. “The fact that you’re even here must mean you can use a Persona too... wait, does that mean that you’ve been causing these mental shutdowns!?” 

Akechi goes to explain everything: how he was the Black Mask, how the Phantom Thieves have thwarted him for the first and last time, and that he would smite them with his justice, or something to that effect. 

At least he would, had he not just noticed that there was a weird cat-like... thing was talking to  him.

"...what the hell are you...?” 

He was genuinely thrown off. He’d seen the Phantom Thieves enter Okumura’s palace, but saw only seven of them. Plus, the voice of this creature sounded just like... 

“As a matter of fact, I’m a human.” 

“Quit bullshiting me! I heard your voice in the real world, and it clearly came out of a cat!” 

Ryuji steps forward to chime in. “Look, there’s a whole buncha complicated circumstances, but Mona’s a human. He’s just stuck in the form of a cat... and sometimes a bus...” 

“...wait, a bus!? That just raises even more questions!” 

“Shut up.” Makoto directs to Akechi, attempting to divert the conversation back on track. “You’re not really in the position for us to indulge you.” 

The detective closes his eyes in mental exhaustion. “...I agree. The sooner you suffer, the better.” He opens them to glare at the group. “By the way, you’re correct. I am the one who induced these shutdowns.” 

Ren glares back. “Mr. Okumura told us that it was Shido who did it. Can I assume he wasn’t aware of your involvement?” 

“Hmph. Okumura was merely a client, a loose end that needed to be disposed of. And that would’ve happened, if it weren’t for you bastards.”   
Haru’s free hand begins to shake in a mixture of fear and anger. “Y-you were going to kill him?”

“Of course. If you had just done the sensible thing and left his shadow there to flee from the collapsing palace, this would be his last full day walking among the living. We’d already prepared a film crew to capture his last words before his unfortunate death. And since he was in possession of a legitimate calling card... the Phantom Thieves would be the prime suspects.” 

He clutches his arm. “However, I didn’t plan for you all to be such idiots! You ruined everything! All of our calculations, plans, tactics... they’re worthless now! And it’s all because of you!” 

Joker solemnly adjusts his gloves. “I’m afraid I don’t see the problem with that. I don’t care what went to plan or what didn’t, I’m still disappointed. Even if we were on opposite sides, I respected you for carrying out your own brand of justice. And now I learn you’ve been killing innocent people... and for what? How do you justify killing these innocent people!?” 

“...heh. You... you really don’t know anything do you!?” 

Akechi’s patience had hit rock bottom. He couldn’t keep from shaking, a deranged grin unconsciously forming on his face. 

“You knew... n-nothing... not who I was... not about Shido’s role... and... you still fucked it all up... y-you... are going... to p-pay!” 

He loses control. He bends over and begins to laugh.  All of  that frustration, exasperation, panic, rage... it all was released in a haunting sound that echoed throughout the chamber. The detective raises his head, revealing bloodshot eyes.

“...have you ever met anyone innocent down here?”

Fox instinctively grips his katana’s hilt. “...what are you saying?” 

“I'm afraid that doesn’t answer my question.” he answers quietly, his voice tinged with condescension. “A mental shutdown occurs when a person’s Shadow is killed. A Shadow is a manifestation of one’s distorted desires, all Shadows are found either in their own Palaces or somewhere down here. Now, I’ll ask you again.” 

Akechi rises to full height. 

“Have you ever met anyone innocent down here?” 

“So that’s how you justify it? Everyone you’ve killed is evil, and you’re the only one who can judge them?” Makoto asks, disgusted. 

“Akagi Ito. Abusive spouse. Drunkard. Probably would’ve crashed that train even if he hadn’t gone berserk.” 

“Akihiro  Kobayakawa . Hid evidence of a sex pervert in his own school. Blackmailed his own students for his personal goals.”

“Kunikazu Okumura. Enabled harsh work conditions. Requested assassinations via mental shutdowns-” 

“That you caused.” interjected Panther. 

“That I was able to cause because of my targets’ distorted desires.”

“That doesn’t matter! You’re still killing people!” 

“Oh, and what would you rather me do? Steal their hearts? What the hell does that solve!? Are we just supposed to hold hands with these horrible people and forgive them for everything!?” 

He lets out a slight chuckle. “...I can tell you’ve never even tried!” 

* * *

Futaba Sakura had been quiet for some time. 

She’d been mostly absorbing everything the detective was saying. Out of everyone, he was the person she most suspected of being  some kind of evil . Of course, she’d never even met the guy, only seeing him on television and hearing secondhand accounts. But there was just something about his face and general attitude that told her that he was  gonna  turn around , dramatically unmask,  and say something like “ Hello, Mr. Phantom Thief. I'm Goro  Akechi .” with an evil grin.

But there was just no dramatics in it. Well, there were, but they were hastily made, not enough to cushion the dawning realization.

“If you caused every single mental shutdown... then did you kill my mother?”

Akechi turns towards the girl, his expression turning into one of genuine puzzlement. 

“...huh. I assumed you’d be thanking me.”

“W-why the hell are you-!” 

“Wakaba Isshiki. Parental neglect. Emotional distance. As I’ve said before, no one that I’ve killed has ever been truly innocent.” 

She grits her teeth. “Shut up.” 

“When I found her here, she said, ’My daughter is merely a trifle compared to my research. If she has to be alone until then, then so be it. The world must come first.’ Do you truly think that any parent who says that deserves to li-?” 

“I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!” 

It was like a fall from a twenty-story building onto an awkwardly sloped staircase. Her pain was blunt and uneven, much like this whole situation. She was confused, angry, and heartbroken. She didn't want to believe that after all of the hardships, the development, the working towards acceptance, they were all put even further into question when it was least expected. 

But she still knew one thing. She would have to sort out her feelings later. Her relationship with her mother and its complications needed to wait. And that was because she needed to take down the bastard that murdered her. 

Ren steps to the front of the group. Deep down, he resented himself. It hadn’t been two days and the whole group was facing one of their toughest challenges yet, and one of them had already suffered. He wondered if this was his fault, if being hasty back in Okumura’s palace had only accelerated the threats coming towards his friends. 

He wouldn’t let any of them fall due to his decisions. 

He walks towards, the rest of the Phantom Thieves following in suit, readying their weapons.  

“I thought you didn’t come here to talk. We're gonna go ahead and cut to the chase,” he says seriously, grabbing the side of his mask. 

Akechi reaches for the right corner of his. “My last act on this earth... it will be to cause your deaths!” 

“ARSENE!” 

“ROBIN HOOD!” 

They tear them off, as two large figures fly behind them. 

The unexpected showdown has begun.

   
   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woof, that was a tough one. I just wanna say that I'm really sorry that this chapter is so late. I've been pretty busy settling into a new job and stuff, so it took a while to get things rolling again. So yeah, this is probably the point where things sorta begin to shift from just Ren and Akechi off to even more of the cast, and I'm really excited to write for them as well. Anyways, I want to thank you all for reading, and tell you that things hopefully move faster.


	8. Black and White

The unexpected showdown was surprisingly one-sided.  

In this state, it was unsurprising. Even the most skilled of fighters can be outnumbered and overwhelmed. Akechi was one relatively powerful fighter, and Robin Hood was one relatively powerful Persona. The Phantom Thieves were seven powerful fighters plus a support member, complete with eight relatively powerful Personas. Not to mention that said Thieves were relatively well-rested, didn’t even break a sweat in their battle against Shinpei Honjo’s shadow, and were generally pissed off. 

Akechi was, in contrast to the monstrous shadows that they often face, clearly human. No matter how horrible he turned out to be, some of the more dangerous items that they carried, such as guns, knives, and swords, were essentially unusable. Shooting or stabbing a living, breathing, human being just wasn’t in their code. 

The result was that everyone was kicking Goro Akechi in the dick. A lot. 

Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration. Some of them were just hitting him with the blunt side of their weapons. Not that it didn’t hurt, of course. The feelings of the hilt of Ren’s dagger slamming into his ribs and the sheath of Yusuke’s sword smacking him across the face weren’t exactly light and fluffy ones. In addition, since Ann’s whip was technically one of the only non-lethal weapons in the group, he was also forced to feel the stinging pain that its strikes caused as well. 

But Ryuji kicked him in the dick. So did Haru, with a surprising amount of force too. Makoto punched him in the dick, but at that point it hurt so bad that Akechi couldn’t really feel the difference. 

He tried desperately to do anything. Give a command to Robin Hood, bring up some kind of wall to stop it, swing with his sword, shoot his gun, anything. But every time he started, another strike landed, forcing the breath out of his lungs, leaving him unable to say a single word. All of his offensive power was useless if he couldn’t use it. 

The cat shoots a slingshot pellet straight into his kneecap. This, as well as the disbelief that the cat was shooting a slingshot, caused Akechi to collapse to his other one, clutching the right knee in pain. Said pain would soon be supplanted by a flying knee to the chin, courtesy of Makoto, knocking him flat on his back on the cold hard ground. 

Everything ached. His body, his pride, most of his feelings... all were rendered asunder in just a couple of minutes. 

The worst part of this was that all of the blows had stopped so suddenly. While they hurt, when one part of him hurt, he’d be immediately distracted by the next one. It was a fresh hell, but it was fresh. But for some reason, they weren’t attacking anymore.  

He was free to just stew over his wounds as he waited for whatever was next.  

* * *

"Alright, that’s enough!” 

Joker held his hand out in front of the group. Out of a sense of trust, they complied, lowering their weapons. 

Ren had no idea what to think of everything, but he for sure knew that something was off. That would go without saying if the guy you occasionally hung out with turned out to be a psychotic serial killer in a bird mask. But after seeing him on the ground like that, it was difficult to keep that perception.  

He walks forward, standing over the fallen detective. 

“...there’s more to this, isn’t there?” 

“...I have no idea... what you’re talking about...” he responds bitterly, with the little breath he had leftover. 

“Why do you work for Shido? He should have a Palace as well, you should know this. Is this really about justice?” 

“...shut up...” 

“Akechi... Goro... if there’s something he has on you, we can help,” he explains, an understanding tone entering his voice. “Shido’s had enough victims. We don’t want y-” 

_BANG_

In the blink of an eye, a sharp pain blasts through his shoulder. 

Ren’s vision momentarily blurred from the suddenness of the wound. He quickly deduced with the parts of his brain that weren’t screaming in agony that it must’ve been a gunshot. As he fell to the ground, his vision cleared, as he saw Goro Akechi standing over him. He was holding a different pistol, a more realistic one than the laser gun he barely got to use. Parts of his suit were changing, going from a white ensemble to a black, armor-like texture. 

 As for his face, just before it was swallowed by a black visor-like mask, it carried an expression that Ren could never forget. 

One of pure, unadulterated rage. 

“VICTIM!?” 

* * *

The others, seeing their leader on the ground at their enemy’s feet, rush forward as quickly as their legs could carry them. The black-masked man swings his hand above him. 

“LOKI!” 

A black spiral of pure darkness engulfs him, creating a shockwave of pure force that blows everyone away from him, including the injured Joker. When the darkness clears, the slender zebra-striped Persona floats above him, radiating an aura of pure murderous intent. 

Akechi clutches his mask, his hands shaking uncontrollably. 

“You... you bastards! I spend... MY WHOLE LIFE! CRAFTING THIS FAÇADE! EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS! KILLING DOZENS!” 

He was practically screaming with anger now.  

“AND YOU... YOU ASSHOLES CALL ME A FUCKING VICTIM!?” 

“Joker! I’ve gotcha!” 

A large fencer-like figure appeared behind Mona, elaborately swiping his sword in Ren’s direction. A refreshing feeling coursed through his body, as the pain in his shoulder gradually dulled, and he got back to his feet. 

“Wait, he has two Personas!?” exclaims Ann in surprise. 

“Looks like we can’t expect things to start making sense anytime soon.” sighs Makoto. 

“His power level’s through the roof!” Futaba calls out. “But... his defense is down. If we hit him hard enough, we could finish this quickly!” 

The black-clad figure raises his gun again, aiming straight at Joker’s head.  

“THIS IS YOUR FAULT! YOU RUINED EVERYTHING! AND FOR THAT... YOU ALL DESERVE DEATH!” 

Ren stands his ground silently. In his head, he knew Akechi was partially right. None of this would’ve happened if he hadn’t picked up Okumura back at his palace. But he also knew that Akechi had hurt his friends and was aiming to hurt them even more. For now, nothing more needed to be said. 

“Fine then.” He draws his own gun, speaking quietly. “In a second... we can finish this.” 

Everything went quiet. The tension was thick enough to feel. For the smallest amount of time, the two men were the only things in that room, their guns trained at each other. 

Two shots ring out simultaneously, piercing the silence. 

One man collapses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Persona fights are hard to write.  
> So yeah, sorry that this chapter was so late. When thinking of these kinds of stories I just have some blank spaces in my mind that say *insert fight here*, and I had to think of how this whole thing would go and stuff. Anyways, the good news is that things should hopefully go more quickly now that I've got past this. The "Black Mask Akechi" arc is nearing its conclusion, and I can't wait to get to it. Thanks for reading!


	9. Regret

“...so, what’re we gonna do with him?” 

The group gathers around Akechi’s body. He was unconscious, having been knocked out by a gunshot to the leg. In his berserk state, the pain was enough to take him out of commission immediately. 

Everything just felt so surreal. So much had been revealed in the past hour, and it ended just as quickly. Just trying to process it was a hassle. 

But there was still that pressing matter: What do the Phantom Thieves do about Goro Akechi? 

“...we couldn’t steal his heart, could we?” asks Yusuke. 

“Unfortunately, that’s impossible.” Morgana explains. “Personas are able to prevent their formation, as well as any shadow counterparts.” 

Ryuji looks at his phone. “...yeah, I’m putting him through the Nav right now, and... he doesn’t show up anywhere.” 

“Maybe we could turn him into the police?” Haru suggests. 

“As much as I’d like to, that’s not gonna work.” debunks Makoto, closing her eyes in thought. “Your dad already said that Shido controls the police. He’d be out in a day, if they even take him.” 

“Yeah, and even without Shido, I don’t think the police would take us accusing their celebrity detective of serial killing seriously without any proof.” Ann admits. 

Ren looks down at the fallen detective, thinking to himself. 

 _...I should hate this guy. He’s killed dozens. He tried to frame us. Hell, he tried to_ kill _us. But... well, there’s probably still more to this. I have no idea what that is... maybe I’m getting sentimental over our times back in the real world. And the state he was in while he was fighting... he really needs_ _some kind of help_ _. Maybe-_  

“So, what do you think Joker?” Ryuji asks. 

 _Right. I’m supposed to be the leader. I can’t get lost in my thoughts while my friends need me._  

 _The way he was talking, he was the one who took care of all the mental shutdowns. If we take him out of commission, Shido can’t harm anyone else. His entire method of attack would be impossible._  

 _The only problem is... how?_  

 _Killing him is out of the question. Kidnapping... of course! We can just tell_ _Sojiro_ _that we’re kidnapping that detective from TV! That’ll end well! But seriously, everyone’s counting on me. I’ve_ _gotta_ _think of something._  

Joker begins to pace around the body. 

 _There_ _has to_ _be something I could do! I’ve just... I've just_ _gotta_ _think of something... something to keep_ _Akechi_ _from doing any more harm..._  

 _…_  

 _…_  

 _...I have no idea whether this’ll work or not, but... it’s our only option_  

“First, we need to get him out of here.” 

Yusuke crosses his arms. “You mean... out of Mementos?” 

“Exactly. I’m not sure how this’ll work, so we need to take some precautions.” 

“Joker... what exactly are you planning?” Makoto asks with light trepidation. 

“I’ll tell you on the way.” the leader says, grunting as he hoists Akechi over his right shoulder. “We can make room in the van, right?”  

“We should all *just* be able to fit.” responds Morgana as he puffs up into the form of a black van. 

“Good. Now let’s get going.” 

The group walks towards the Mona-mobile, their captive of sorts in tow. 

Well, most of the group. 

“Er, Oracle? Are you... are you alright?” Joker asks concernedly. 

Futaba had been staring at the opposite wall for a while after the whole fight had concluded. She seemed to be lost in thought, understandably given what she heard from Akechi. She just kept looking off into the darkness, before Ren called out again. 

“Futaba, if there’s anything you wanna talk about, I-” 

“Ah, sorry!” she exclaims in surprise. “I’ve been holding everyone up, haven’t I?” 

“No, that’s fine. I was just wondering if you were okay after-” 

“I’ll be fine. I just needed to think through some stuff for a sec. So, you were saying stuff about a plan?” 

Joker stares at her a bit, still worried.  

 _...I'm_ _gonna_ _have to_ _talk to her about this later. For now, we're_ _gonna_ _have to_ _keep moving. We don’t want_ _Akechi_ _to wake up before we put this into motion._  

“Alright. We should get out of here.” he says, walking back to the van. “After all this, I’m kinda starting to get sick of this place.” 

* * *

 

Goro Akechi’s eyelids slowly flutter open. 

His eyes slowly adjust to the brightness of his surroundings, a definite contrast with Mementos. His ears pick up the white noise of general chatter. His fingers feel cold metal. 

Akechi pushes himself up to a sitting position. He was in the subway station, having been laid on a metal bench facing the trains. 

 _Huh. They left me alive. I guess I could thank their idiotic idealism, but... there’s something off here._  

 _...so, how long have I been lying like this?_  

He reaches into his right pocket for his phone, hoping to check the time on it. His hand grasps at the fabric for a bit, before realizing that his phone wasn’t there. He then checks his left pocket. 

His hand begins to shake. 

 _..._ _wh_ _-where is my phone?_  

He moves his hand across his coat, frantically searching any pockets he could find, even the smaller ones that he never even used. Nothing. 

 _Where the hell is it!? Where the-_    
_…_  

 _...it had to have been them... they must’ve taken my phone, and..._  

 _…no._ _It_ _d-doesn't work like that, does it? Th-they can’t just..._  

His eyes grow to the size of dinner plates as a terrifying realization came to him. Akechi almost leaps off the bench and breaks into a sprint. His thoughts clouded by panic, he pushes through the crowd toward the station’s exit. 

Once the outdoor light reached his eyes, he recognized his surroundings, and oriented himself accordingly. 

 _Yongen_ _-Jaya. Then they must be at Leblanc. I need to hurry or...!_  

He couldn’t bear to complete his thought. Dwelling on it would only make it more likely to happen. At least, that was what he thought in his panicked logic. Given how quick he was moving, it didn’t take long to get close to the café. 

Just before reaching the last turn towards it, he hears a noise. A noise that he was dreading to hear. 

It was the sound of something breaking. 

* * *

 

The other thieves crowd around Ren as he raises the metal bat over his head, aimed at the phone laying on the asphalt ground of the alley. With a powerful swing, it slams down. 

The glass screen instantly shatters from the first blow, revealing the complex circuitry inside. The second swing strikes that layer, destroying the delicate framework beyond repair. A third blow breaks apart the phone itself, sending two halves of it sliding in opposite directions.  

Ren leans the bat against the wall behind him. 

 _The navigator app can’t be deleted. I’ve already tried that myself. But as for the phone it’s on... if we destroy that, then the app can’t function at all. Without the app, travelling to the Metaverse is impossible. No Metaverse means no Personas, and no Personas means no more mental shutdowns. And no mental shutdowns mean that Shido’s plans are essentially useless._  

“So... that’s it?” Ryuji asks. 

“It should be.” Ren says, relieved. “Now all we need to do is wait for Okumura’s confession, then we can head straight for Shi-” 

“...y-you...” 

A familiar voice comes from the alley’s entrance. Everyone turns towards it to see Goro Akechi, the now-setting sun clearly illuminating his face.   
His just stood there, motionless, looking at the remains of his phone with a blank stare. His hands and legs were shaking. 

He takes a hesitant step forward, before losing his balance and collapsing to his knees. He wanted to say something. To curse the Phantom Thieves, to say that he’ll get back at them somehow, anything. But any hate-filled rhetoric was crushed by the reality of what had happened. 

The Phantom Thieves walked past him out of the alley. They did so wordlessly: after all, there was nothing more to say. Feelings of betrayal, anger, and confusion had already been expressed. All that was left was pure exhaustion. 

As they walk away, Ren takes a look back at the fallen detective.  

 _...I’m sorry it had to be like this._  

His eyes filled with uncertainty; he joins the rest of the group. 

Akechi collapses further onto his balled-up hands, his head hung low.  

 _...it’s... it’s all over._  

 _...I worked my entire life for this, and it’s all... it’s all over..._  

Tears begin to fall on the pavement. 

 _...I failed you..._    
  
_...I f-failed you..._

 _...I’m... I’m so sorry..._  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so ends the first sorta-arc of this whole thing. I'm gonna be honest, this whole thing has been a blast to write, and I'm glad to have finally gotten to this point with it. I also just wanna say that the response to all this has been incredible, and I'm ecstatic that you all are enjoying it. Honestly, it's kinda in the air as to when I can start the next chapter, especially since my new work hours are pretty dense, but I'm gonna try my best to not leave y'all hanging for long. Anyways, thank you all so much for reading!


	10. Imprisoned Soul

“Ah, hello there. It’s been so long since I’ve had company here. It feels... rather nice.”   


“...”   


“Hmm. Someone looks rather aggravated. Are you feeling alright?”   


“...there have been some... complications.”   


“I assume you’re referring to the game?”   


“Naturally. My player has been... compromised.”   


“Oh really? Have I won my freedom by default?”   


“No. There were... extraneous circumstances. In his state, it is now impossible for him to achieve my goal.”   


“Interesting. So  did the one meant to achieve complete control turn out to be uncontrollable? Or would you say it was simply bad luck?”   


“...I will be choosing a new disciple. This one will not fail.”   


“I see... you know, this game of yours seems awfully forgiving to a certain side.”   


“...”   


“And by the way, why would you tell me this? As you can see, I’m in no real position to object. Unless... do you seek my approval?”   


“You don’t assume this game to be fair. Consider my presence to be a reminder that I am not an unjust god. To compensate for that man’s failure, I will be generous. You will be allowed to pick another player as well.”   


“Oh really? Well, it has been a while since I’ve had some sort of freedom here, even if it’s this small. However, things are going to be progressing awful quickly. Making a choice like this so soon would be quite... rash.”   


“Will you not accept my offer?”   


“Well, I never said that. I’ll just ring you up when I’m ready.”   


“Good. I will be taking my leave.”   


“By the way, how is my attendant... rather, attendants. Are they doing fine?”   


“Yes. I will be-”   


“And what of the Velvet Room? Have you kept it clean for me?”   


“It doesn’t need  cleani -”   


“Oh, I thought the same thing before. Trust me, the dust bunnies sneak up on you quicker than any Phantom Thief could.”   


“...I am done here.”   


“One more thing before you leave.”   


“...”   


“...you’re not getting away with this.”   


“...says the man to the god. Farewell for now, prisoner.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright never mind, the next chapter came out quicker than I could've expected. *Now* everything for this arc is done. Thanks for reading!


	11. When She Was Here

Futaba Sakura lies in bed, staring at the ceiling. 

She couldn’t sleep. It wasn't for a lack of trying of course. After everything that happened that day, she needed it. A betrayal had occurred, truths were revealed, and there was a climactic battle, all in the relatively small time frame of an hour and a half. Sleep would be a welcome respite, a clear divider between the troubles of this day and what lies ahead in the next. 

But what Goro Akechi told her about her mother... she couldn’t move away from it. It’s like her mind was trapped in those thoughts, forced to think through those words over and over again, unable to contemplate anything else. 

 _My daughter is merely a trifle compared to my research. If she_ _has to_ _be alone until then, then so be it. The world must come first._  

It was a lie. Of course it was. It had to be. They were the words of a serial killer, trying to get under her skin to reduce her effectiveness. Or maybe it was just a random act of cruelty, born out of his clearly agitated mindset.  

...but there was just something about the way he recounted it all. Futaba had been lied to before, quite maliciously in fact. And the way that Akechi had recounted how much her mother deserved to die was quite different from how the men in suits told Futaba how much she deserved it. It didn’t come with a plastered-on mad face or pushing his volume to heights that burrowed into her skull. He was... genuine. This was something he actually believed in. And what he believed in was that her mom... 

Futaba put her hands over her face. She’d circled back. Again. Everything was just so frustratingly ambiguous that it was practically torture to just lie there. Futaba needed something, anything, that could help her find out what the heck to think about all of this. 

 _...I can’t call the others tonight. They’re probably all tired after today. Plus, they already went to the trouble of saving me once. I don’t_ _wanna_ _bother them to do it again. I need to take care of this on my own._  

She gets out of bed and reaches for her glasses. 

 _...I guess it’s settled then. She'd better still be here._  

* * *

 

Futaba pulls out her phone and looks around. 

The train station was mostly empty, as they usually are on Monday nights. There was a drunken salaryman sleeping on a bench, a delinquent squatting next to the rails, a hobo sitting against a wall... the emptiness of it all almost transformed it into another place entirely. 

It was oddly unnerving to her. She’d normally welcome this peace and quiet, but it only made her thoughts even louder. Not to mention that there’s something about bright wide-open spaces in the middle of the night that are just unsettling to everyone. 

Futaba goes back to her phone and taps the navigator app. At this point, a dark labyrinth filled with monsters that could easily kill her felt more comfortable than this place. 

* * *

 

“Necronomicon!” 

The darkness of the Mementos is lit up by a green glow as the spaceship materializes, floating around ten feet from the floor. A long black cable-like tentacle drops from the hole at the bottom. Futaba grabs it with her right hand, as it hoists her upwards into the Persona. 

As she floats in the unusually large void, an array of colorful lights, screens, and rings surround her, giving off bevies of scrolling text and code. Of course, most of them would be incomprehensible to even the most skilled of programmers, given the abstract nature of its functions. Futaba had often found that the best course of action was to channel her will into the Persona itself to help her friends, and maybe swipe some screens around to look cool. 

However, there were a couple of green symbols floating around that Futaba had been reluctant to touch. The first one was that of a cartoonish looking bomb. Bombs meant explosions, and if she didn’t know what would explode, then it was better off leaving that button’s function a mystery. 

The other one though... 

Futaba takes a deep breath. She wasn’t entirely certain that this would work. And if it didn’t, the doubts in her head would consume her again.   
But the same thing would happen if she didn’t try. Nothing would change. She had to press onwards. It was her only option.  

She finds the other symbol. It’s a silhouette, a quite familiar one at that. 

It was of Futaba herself. 

She taps it. 

All other symbols blinked out, leaving her alone in the darkness. 

For the briefest moments, Futaba assumed the worst. That she would just be stuck here forever. Alone. Alone again, with just her thoughts to torment her for as long as she lived. 

And then, there was a light. Her feet touched solid ground. A warmness washed over her skin. 

“This is... still here?” 

She was standing on familiar ground. The limestone bricks on the floor, the green square in the middle of the square platform, the pillars near each corner. And just off of it... sand. Sand, as far as the eye could see. 

“Not exactly.” 

The words were spoken in her voice, but they came from a little to her right. Standing next to her was... herself. Or rather, the her from two months ago. The priestess that had owned this place. 

“And... you’re still here too?” 

The shadow closed her eyes. “Yes. I have always been.” 

“...but how?” 

“As for me, I have been and am still serving as your Persona. As for this place, it’s simply a reconstruction of where you once were. A memory.” 

“So, does this mean that my distorted desires are...” 

As Futaba’s Shadow opens her eyes, the original noticed that they were blue, rather than the yellow that she had known her for. 

“No. This is more of a product of one surpassing their own palace, and earning a Persona from within it. Your heart is no longer clouded in distortion.” 

Futaba takes a cross-legged seat on the edge of the platform. This is where she had fought the beast with her mother’s face, the very representation of all of her doubts. Except... 

“It sure doesn’t feel like it.” she says dejectedly, resting her head on her open palms. 

“I already know what happened. The words of Goro Akechi, correct?” 

“...ya know, I thought it was all over. Mom loved me the whole time, her death wasn’t my fault, and I could go back to... actually living. And after all that...” 

She buries her head in her hands. 

“I wanted to ask you... were you telling me the truth? Did she actually want to spend more time with me?” 

The shadow walks up behind her. 

“Everything you saw was the truth.” 

Futaba raises her head expectantly. 

“So... he was... he was lying, wasn’t he? He... he had to be, right!?” 

The priestess looks on to into the distance. “I am thou, and thou art I. Whether he is or isn’t telling the truth, we both only know as much as each other.” 

Futaba stares blankly forward. “So that’s it, huh? No real answers?” 

“The real answer is that your mother loved you at the very end. Whatever happened up until then, that is the absolute truth.” 

The shadow takes a seat next to her human self, her feet dangling off the pyramid's edge. 

“I’m sorry that I can’t give you anything substantial. But you don’t need to go through this alone. I see that you’ve made plenty of friends.” 

The human lowers her head. 

“I don’t... I don’t wanna bother them with all this again.” 

“From what I’ve seen, they would think differently. That’s what makes them your friends. If you want to find the truth of all this, then they’ll gladly help.” 

A couple of minutes pass as the two sit in silence, overlooking the barren land. 

“Th-thank you.” 

Futaba raises her head. Her face was stained with tears, seeping through the bottom of her mask. She hugs her other self in an awkward but genuine sideways manner given their relative positions. 

The shadow gives a gentle smile. “I should be thanking you. I’m happy that you’re still moving forward.” 

* * *

 

After a few more minutes of conversation, some about her current situation, and some about some upcoming video games, Futaba absentmindedly checks her phone. 

“...wow, it’s getting pretty late, isn’t it?” 

“You say that like it wasn’t before.” 

Futaba looks up at the intensely bright sun. “I mean, in my defense, this place doesn’t really give off a late-night feel, does it?” 

“That... isn’t wrong.” 

The hacker stands up and walks towards the platform’s center. “So, you wouldn’t know how to get back to the real world, from here, would you?” 

“It is all tied to your will.” 

“...yeah, that sounds about right. Anyways, thanks again for the help. For now, I’ll see what we can find out back on the other side.” 

Futaba’s shadow doesn’t speak a word, but smiles at her, waving her hand. In the next moment, Futaba was standing back at the Mementos entrance. 

A yawn forces its way out of her mouth. At this point, the main thing on Futaba’s mind was to get some rest, which to her, was a great step ahead from where she was when she walked in. 

And so, Futaba opened her phone, warped herself out of Mementos, and proceeded to walk back towards her home, aiming to crash directly into her bed with no regrets. 

Except for one. 

“...I should’ve asked her what that bomb icon does.” she mutters to herself.   
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Geez, what a long day! It's taken like, 6 chapters to get through. Anyways, I got a new job, the hours have been pretty tough, but now that things have slowed down, I think things'll be getting out quicker from now on (Of course, I said this the last ten times, so who knows). Still, I'm glad that with taking a different direction, I can go into all these different scenarios that we haven't seen before, and that's definitely gonna be true with the next chapter. Okumura's Confession is up next. Until then, thanks for reading!


	12. Confession

Ren awakens to a familiar ringing. 

He raises his arm to the sky and waves it around a bit, shaking a bit of energy into it. The hand drops onto his desk, flailing for a bit, before eventually reaching the phone on his desk. 

Through very slightly opened eyes, he looks at his messages. 

|Haru: Is anyone awake? 

|Ryuji: I am. 

|Makoto: Me too.  

|Yusuke: I think I overslept 

|Ryuji: Yusuke, it’s like six in the morning. 

|Yusuke: I am well aware of this 

|Ryuji: Not even gonna go there 

|Ren: Im awae 

|Ren: awke 

|Haru: I mean, if you want to go to bed, I can always tell you in the morning. 

|Ren: No im fibe 

|Ren: im listenumg 

|Makoto: You can go ahead Haru. 

|Haru: Thanks. 

|Haru: Father has scheduled a press conference for today. 

|Yusuke: That’s fantastic! 

|Ryuji: Alright! I told ya things’d work out!  

|Makoto: This is good news. We’re one step closer to ending this. 

|Ren: gopd worl tgesam im so prfoujn d of uj 

|Ryuji: I seriously think you should get back to sleep Ren. 

|Yusuke: So do we want to meet up for the confession? 

|Haru: I was actually just about to mention that. 

|Haru: Father had reserved Destinyland for a company party, but circumstances led to it being cancelled. 

|Haru: But we still have the reservation, so I was thinking we could all take advantage of it. 

|Ren: Wait, 

|Ren: we’re going 

|Ren: to Destinyland!?  

|Makoto: His grammar’s improved. Good morning Ren. 

|Ren: Thank you so much Haru. I’ve only been there once before, and it was one of the best days of my life.  

|Haru: Don’t mention it. After everything we went through yesterday, I thought a break would be in order. 

|Ryuji: Damn, I never thought I’d be going to Destinyland today. Thanks Haru! 

|Makoto: Me neither. I can’t wait! 

|Yusuke: With the two extra hours of sleep I’ve saved up, I should be able to enjoy it all the more! 

|Ryuji: Again, not going there. 

* * *

Masayoshi Shido had just gotten his pizza delivered. 

It was an odd dinner for a man of his stature. His large house-bordering-on-mansion seemed ill-suited to carry a simple meal such as this. However, Mr. Shido, being the busy man that he is, never really learned how to cook for himself. 

He knew that this was a problem. The man was around 53 years old, although one wouldn’t tell that by a glance, and he was eating like a college kid. He’d never really been motivated to stray from these habits: he was rich enough for it to be sustainable, and he exercised well enough to stave off any extra pounds. 

Still, he was about to be the country’s next Prime Minister. Fast food and boxed dinners would be ill-fitting for his public image. 

 _...maybe it’s about time I settled down, maybe get a wife to make food for me. It’s certainly not too early... yeah, I think I got what it takes to put myself out there. Getting this new job certainly won’t hurt my chances either._  

 _...speaking of which..._  

Shido places the square cardboard box on the small table in front of his television. He grabs the remote and hits the power button. 

It doesn’t work. 

He points it further towards the screen and presses it again. 

The image of a long white table appears, topped with about ten microphones, all pointing towards its center. The chattering of the reporters suddenly turned to whispers as Kunikazu Okumura walked up to his makeshift podium. 

Shido takes a seat on his sofa and grabs a slice. 

 _And now... everything falls into place._  

* * *

“Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to gather here.” 

The thieves all stare at their phones in anticipation. 

Destinyland was insanely fun. Fast rides, good food, no lines, it was almost the perfect day. Everyone had a good time, even Futaba, who had seemed rather distant just after the whole Akechi ordeal had come to pass. But it was all far behind the group now. They were completely focused on their screens, seeing if their hard work had paid off. 

Ren in particular was staring rather intensely. There was just something... off about it. 

“Today, I’d like to elaborate upon the whole truth behind my company’s labor situation.” 

Everything was going according to plan. They stole Okumura’s heart. They saved Okumura’s life. They took down Goro Akechi, the Black Mask. And soon, Shido would be exposed to the world as the murderer he was. 

“How my employees were forced to work under severe conditions, how... lax we were with sanitation...” 

It was all so easy. Almost too easy, he thought. More importantly, the fact that it happened after a trip to Destinyland made him quite nervous. 

“And how my corporation acted as a whole to... cover up every facet of this scandal.” 

 _Destroying_ _Akechi’s_ _phone should’ve done it, right? He seemed broken up about it, but did he know it was possible? Maybe he got another phone and the navigator app just appeared on it as well?_  

“For all of this, I wholeheartedly apologize.” 

 _Was_ _Akechi_ _the only one causing mental_ _shutdowns?_ _We didn’t really ask him, now that I think about it. What if there was someone else?_  

These thoughts and many others entered his mind as Okumura continued to answer questions. Ren Amamiya was no stranger to things going wrong at the last minute, and he feared that this may possibly not be an exception. 

“About that... I have a critical piece of information to announce here today.” 

And everything seemed to slow down. The surrounding air entered Ren’s lungs and rested there, making them feel heavy. Okumura took a deep breath himself, preparing to drop the veritable bombshell for the world to see. It felt like it lasted way longer than it should’ve. 

After the agony of waiting, he opened his mouth again. 

“I...” 

He let out a single cough. 

Ren’s mind immediately went into panic mode. 

 _N-no. Did... did we fail!? Is he_ _gonna_ _die!? Dammit, this is all my fault! If only I’d-_  

“Sorry... dry throat.” he says, taking a swig from the water bottle on the table. 

Ren breathed out, in both relief and self-admonishment. He really was being paranoid. 

“I... I’ve been part of a conspiracy that’s been inducing the mental shutdowns that have been going on lately. The leader of which, is... Masayoshi Shido.” 

* * *

Shido stares at the television blankly, not sure how to process what he’d just heard. 

The crowd goes into an uproar. 

“Wait, you mean the politician!?” 

“You’re saying he’s causing the mental shutdowns!?” 

“Are you sure about this!?” 

“Yes,” he says solemnly. “Masayoshi Shido is behind the mental shutdown cases.”  

He never noticed it, but his hand was crushing the pizza he'd been holding like a vice, shaking as the grease slowly poured out through the gaps between his fingers. 

He frantically stomps over to his phone and mashes in a number, not caring about the crushed slice that he dropped on his carpet, nor how he was getting sauce all over the phone’s buttons.

His fist clenches as the phone on the other end rings once, twice, thrice, four times. Midway through the fifth ring, the voice of the director of the Special Investigations Unit emanates into his ear. 

“Ah, good evening sir. How was his dea-” 

“Bring me Akechi.” he growls, his voice stressing every consonant. 

“Sir, is everything al-” 

“NOW!”   
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, Shido's 53. I know, I'm shocked too, I double and triple checked the wiki, but it's true. He has aged *very* well. Anyways, now that this has happened, things are truly about to go off the rails. I can't wait to continue on with this stuff. Thanks for reading!


	13. Reversal

“Okumura. I want him dead.”

Shido grips the phone so hard that the plastic is about to crack as he speaks these terse words to the man on the other side of the line. 

“Yeaaaah... see, I don’t really think we’re gonna.” 

Shido’s blood temperature rises to new heights. 

“What... do you mean... you’re not ‘gonna’?” he growls through gritted teeth. 

“It means what it means. It’s not viable.” 

“What the hell do you mean!? This is your goddamn job, and if you want your pay, you’re gonna-” 

“Look man, we saw the conference. Your name’s out there. And since you’re up to your designer glasses in shit, don’t blame us if the family doesn’t wanna wade in it to pick you up.” 

“Do you... DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHA-” 

“Now answer me this, Mr. Soon-To-Be Prime Minister. If a guy says that you’re a murderer, and he ends up bein’ murdered, who’re they gonna think did the murderin’?” 

Shido’s rage boils over. 

“FINE THEN! FUCK OFF FOR ALL I CARE!” 

“Yeesh, now I’m kinda glad ya got screwed over. No one wants an Ahab steerin’ the countr-” 

He slams the phone back into the receiver before he could finish.   

 _Dammit! What the hell happened!? Everything was working off without a hitch, and he just... he just up and-!_  

His screaming thoughts were pierced by the sound of the phone ringing again. He yanks it back to his ear. 

“This... had better be good.” he groans, his other hand clutching at his forehead. 

“W-well, I wouldn’t say it is.” 

“...just get it over with.” 

“...we can’t get ahold of Akechi. We’ve tried calling, asked his coworkers, tried using his phone’s GPS... it’s like he up and vanished.” 

“...keep looking. Hold the law off as long as possible. Screw up, and I’m taking you down with me.” 

“Understood. I’ll... I’ll do what I ca-” 

He slams the phone back down again. His entire body almost radiating with anger, he storms his way to his indoor gym. 

 _When I get my hands on that damn_ _trai_ _t_ _or_ _..._ _he's_ _gonna_ _fuckin’ regret this!_  

When the sun rises, his punching bag will have lost nearly a quarter of its weight in stuffing. 

* * *

Mr. Ooe had just begun to sip his tea when he heard the commotion. 

A crowd had surrounded the edge of the ship’s pool area, opposite of him. It was quite infuriating: he had just wanted to have a nice siesta, watching the ocean waves crash against the ship’s side from a comfy deck chair. The noise from the gathering of people certainly wasn’t adding to the ambience that he had wished for.

Finally fed up with it all, he sets down his tea and makes his way to the chattering crowd. 

“What in blazes is going on here?” 

“Ah, Mr. Ooe. You didn’t hear?” responds a masked woman, trying to peer over the restless crowd. “A couple of our passengers are being punished.” 

“Oh really? It isn’t that jittering bartender from Central Hall, is it?” he asks jokingly. “Maybe once he’s thrown into drink, he’ll learn how to get them right, yes?” 

The woman giggles to herself. “No actually. You're never going to guess who’s up there.” 

Puzzled, Ooe raises himself to the toes of his feet to see what the fuss in the center of the crowd’s attention was. 

He witnesses two lone figures, standing on two haphazardly nailed planks attached to the ship’s edge. A guard stood behind each, gun aimed directly at their backsides.  

One of them was more familiar.  Purple  suit, tinted shades, and black hair.  It was that cleaner, the one that had been wandering the boat. While not to the extent of that bartender, the politician didn’t much care for him, strutting about like he was the only son of Shido.

The other one was more obscure, but Ooe had seen him around. A kid, around sixteen-ish, with long brown hair and a tan peacoat. He never talked much, just kind of showed up at certain places, and not for very long. 

“What did they do?” 

“Well, I’m not quite sure,” says the woman. “Something about betraying Mr. Shido’s trust? Either way, he must’ve given the order, and I trust he made the right call. And either way... it’s kind of exciting, isn't it?” 

“Well, when you think about it, it’s been a while since this has happened. Who knows when I’ll be able to see another one?” 

Ooe  looks back to the planks, seeing that the two men on the planks had been pushed even further to their edges. He decides that the tea can wait for now.

_The idiots. It’s an honor to be on this ship. Why would they even think of betraying him?_  

* * *

Ren wipes the sweat off his brow.  

It felt like it took a lifetime, but they’d done it. The accusation had been made. Masayoshi Shido’s name was officially out there. Goro  Akechi , his tool for causing mental shutdowns, was out of commission. He intended to gather the gang together to steal his heart, but given the press response, he wasn’t sure if that was even necessary at this point. It was entirely possible that the police could get a confession before they even started on his palace.

“So, that should be it, right?” Ann relievedly asks.

“It sure looks like it.” Ren responds. 

“It almost... doesn’t seem real.” Morgana says in a bit of shock. “I dunno, it just kinda felt like this would go on a bit longer than it did.” 

“C’mon Morgana,” Ryuji sighs, “I get the feeling, but do ya have to jinx it straight out the gate like that?” 

“Exactly,” Yusuke declares jovially. “Personally, I think that absolutely nothing is going to go wrong from now on. Everything will work out perfectly.”

“Alright Yusuke, you’re making it worse.”  

“Sis just texted me.” Makoto says, looking at her phone. “Says she’s gonna be busy tonight. It's most likely a breakthrough for her case.” 

“That's great!” Futaba eagerly chimes in. “And if she finds out anything new, we could always hack her computer again for details.”  

“That's a good idea, but I feel like we should see how things play out for now.” Ren says, stifling a yawn. “For now, I think we’ve earned ourselves a little break.” 

“I agree.” says Haru. “It’s getting pretty late anyways.”

“...could I get in one last ride first?” Ryuji asks innocently. 

“Yeah, tomorrow’s a school day. We need to get as much rest in as we can.” 

“...fine.” he says, sighing in disappointment. 

* * *

“Yes!” 

Yuuki Mishima pumps his fists in the air, then quickly admonishes himself for being too loud. He didn’t want his parents to wake up and ruin the mood. 

Still, Mishima thought it to be fate that he decided not to go to bed early today. The stream of the Okumura Press Conference had just finished, and the results exceeded his expectations. Not only did he confess, but he gave away the name of the bastard who’d been causing the mental shutdowns. It was like having a really fun birthday party, then winning the lottery the very next day. 

He was almost shaking from the excitement. He was the one that make the popularity poll which had Okumura at the top. He was the one that allowed the public to notify the Phantom Thieves of this man. And now, he may have been indirectly responsible for saving lives in the literal sense. Sure, it may not have been entirely intentional, but he still felt glad that things were working out like this. 

He closes the conferences tab and opens up the Phan-Site's forum, anticipating only the best. 

|What the hell was that? 

|damn phoney 

|really wants to get in the news, huh? 

Mishima’s good mood begins to fade out. 

|Sure, that serial killer was the Next Prime Minister. The Logical Choice 

|Well, I hear the guy’s been getting into politics. Bold Strategy Cotton. 

|a million yen says he bought a calling card at the store 

|showoff 

|he’s worse than i thought shidos a nice guy 

|What a fucking snake. I hope the Phantom Thieves’ll stop lying on their asses and steal his heart for real 

|Yeah, wish theydactually do something 

|I dunno, maybe the fame got to their heads 

Mishima’s eyes dart towards his poll.  _Are the Phantom Thieves_ ** _Just_** was the question, and the results had been at around 92% this morning. 

They were now at 87%. 

He starts to sweat. 

“...wh-what the fuck is going on?”   
   


   
   
   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Okumura Confession arc ends after one more chapter. It's another short one, so it may possibly be out tomorrow. And after that, everything will be set for things to take a turn for the Extremely Different. Until then, thanks for reading!


	14. The Game is Afoot

“Ichiryusai... Madarame.” 

The voice was shaky, but loud enough to awaken the old man from his cell’s bed.

Madarame slowly pulls himself out of it to stand on the floor. His internal clock mixed with the lack of noticeable light in the prison told him that it was late, possibly past midnight. As his eyes adjusted, he sees a lone figure standing outside the cell’s bars. He couldn’t quite see his face, but judging by the uniform, it was most likely a prison guard. 

“Yes? Do you... need something?” replies Madarame, rubbing his eyes. 

“...Ichiryusai... Madarame...” 

His voice was wavering even more, as if he was frantically struggling to say the words.

Tired and confused, the prisoner clarifies. “...yes, that is my name. Do you need something fro-” 

The guard’s left hand suddenly shoots up in front of him, pointing at the former artist. 

“...Ichi...ryu...sai...” 

Outside, the clouds part out of the moon’s way, allowing moonlight to shine through the small window at the top of the opposite wall from the bars, illuminating the figure.

The hand was shaking, fighting as hard as it could to keep its grip on the pistol steady. 

* * *

The whole prison had erupted in commotion. Waking up to a gunshot tends to have that result anywhere. 

Guards kept pouring in as the lights were turned on, creating a dissonant illumination when compared to the night sky. Prisoners were clutching the bars, yelling at them to let them out, not knowing that the shot that had fired would be the only one for tonight. 

At the scene, IchiryusaiMadarame was found dead in his cell. The man had taken up painting as part of his rehabilitation, aiming to finally make something of his own, instead of stealing the work of others. His body had collapsed over his easel, the ashen hole in his heart seeping blood all over the canvas, staining his last work. 

A prison guard was found lying face-down on the cold hard floor, also dead. A cursory examination showed no external wounds, but a black fluid was flowing out of his eyes and mouth, as if his face was leaking. In his right hand was a gun, assumed to have been recently fired. His other hand had been rigorously clutching a scrap of paper. 

Four words were hastily scrawled on it. 

_ The game is afoot _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, I'm takin' a break. Now that things have been properly set up, the next arcs are gonna be quite different. More focus on the individual Phantom Thieves, more differences in how things play out, less chapters per in-universe day, things moving quicker, etc. But before that, I'm gonna need some time to recharge and get a lay of how I sort all this out. In the meantime, thanks for reading!


	15. Aftermath

Yusuke Kitagawa was awakened by his phone’s alarm. 

He slowly sits up in his bed and lets out a yawn. He slept rather well through the night. Perhaps he was satisfied of the job-well-done that he contributed to. They were close to stopping a killing spree after all. Knowing that you’ve changed the world in some way was a great thing to go to bed to. 

Of course, even after all of that, there was still school to go to. Yusuke stood out of his bed and began his morning routine, getting dressed, showering,  getting a fruit for breakfast, and opening the dorm room’s door . 

As he walked out, he absentmindedly decided to pull out his phone. Perhaps there was news about Okumura’s confession, or about Shido’s response to all this. 

He pulled up a news app and looked at the top story.   
 ****

** Artist  ** ** Ichiryusai ** **** ** Madarame ** **  Murdered in Jail Cell **

Yusuke just stood in the doorway, his expression unchanging. His eyes were locked on those words, the words that didn’t even seem real, reading them over and over again.   
 ****

** Artist  ** ** Ichiryusai ** **** ** Madarame ** **  Murdered in Jail Cell **

* * *

Masayoshi Shido sat his gym floor, sweating profusely, both out of the exhaustion of his  night long workout and the fear  that caused it. All he could feel was a sense of dread.  Like he was up a shark-infested shit’s creek without a paddle.  Time had slowed down to a sickening crawl, that night, as his heart just desired the morning to come, to get everything ove r with.

He nearly jumped as his phone rang.

He fished  it  out of the pocket of his gym shorts.

“It better be good.” 

“Don’t worry, it actually is.” replied the voice of the director. 

“...come again?” 

“No one believes him.” 

Shido’s eyes could only widen in disbelief. “Wait... what do you mean?” 

“As far as the public was concerned, this confession was a political stunt. They think he’s planting seeds of doubt so he can get in the next PM race.” 

“...you... you’re kidding.” Shido exhales. 

“I know you don’t like to hear jokes sir, especially about on matters as serious as this.” 

“That’s... that’s fantastic!” he exclaims, standing up. “Arrange for a press conference tonight. We have an angle to squeeze our way out of this nightmare.” 

“I’ll pass it along to your campaign managers.” 

Shido chuckles to himself, all the pent up air in his lungs finally being released. He was still alive. He’d always thought to himself that there was some kind of god watching over him, saving him from the pit of despair, and this news proved it. Masayoshi Shido had dodged a bullet, all the while smelling like a rose. 

“Er, sir? Are you s-still there?” asked the director, a hint of hesitation slinking into his voice. 

“Ah, sorry. I guess I just needed to... relieve some stress. Anything else?” 

“Well... there’s bad news too.” 

And just like that, Shido’s body seized up again. 

“...I thought you understood that I didn’t like to hear jokes.” he said, slightly deepening his voice. 

“Well, the news just broke... r-right now.” 

Shido, his sense of dread being brought back, shakily answered. “Just... tell me what it is.” 

“...Madarame was murdered last night.” 

The already sweat-drenched Shido couldn’t tell that even more started to generate from his scalp. The director quickly and nervously went on. “He... he was killed by a guard, and the guard died, and the symptoms... the symptoms were the same as a mental shutdown. A note that was left there just said... it just said “The Game is Afoot”.   
Shido started to shake with rage and fear. While Madarame wasn’t too high up in the Conspiracy’s rankings or prioritys, he was still a donor, and a rather prominent one at that. That, in addition to the fact that it happened on the same night as the confession couldn’t have been mere coincidence. 

Someone was out to get him. And that someone could induce mental shutdowns. The Phantom Thieves’s M.O. didn’t include any murder, especially if they easily could’ve killed him while they were in his palace. Which left one possible culprit... 

“Keep up the search for Akechi.” 

“Wait, so it was hi-?” 

“Now.” he quietly interrupted. “I need you to bring him to me. While you’re at it, go through the whole Conspiracy, top to bottom. If anyone shows even a shred of disloyalty, kick ‘em out. That especially includes your apartment. And keepthe press conference in my schedule.” 

“Y-yes sir.” 

“And don’t you dare call me until it’s over, got it?” 

“...understood.” 

Shido jabs the button to hang up, tossing it away onto the gym’s carpet. 

He raised his fists at the sandbag again. It would be even lighter by the time the press conference started. 

* * *

|Ren: Mishima texted me. We need to talk. 

|Ann: Definitely.  

|Makoto: This isn’t how this was supposed to work out. 

|Ryuji: It’s insane! Why the hell do they just straight-up assume he’s lying! 

|Ren: Well, my best guess is that no one liked him enough to trust him. 

|Futaba: I see what you’re getting at. A shady exec wrapped up in worker’s violations isn’t someone you take at their word. 

|Ann: And there’s also the rumor that he’s getting into politics, and that’s a whole other mess. 

|Ryuji: I get that, but our other targets confessed to pretty shitty things too. Why did they believe them and not him? 

|Makoto: It’s most likely because they had nothing to gain. Neither  Kamoshida ,  Madarame , or Kaneshiro ever implicated anyone else in their crimes.

|Ann: Speaking of Madarame, did you hear about him too? 

|Ren: Yeah. As for that, I have no clue where to start. 

|Ryuji: Well, before we do, has anyone heard from Yusuke? 

|Futaba: I haven’t.  

|Ren: Neither have I. 

|Ann: No. 

|Makoto: I’m starting to get worried. 

|Ryuji: Ren, if you see Kawakami, try to convince her to let me off the hook for skipping class. 

|Ren: You’re gonna check up on him? 

|Ryuji: You guys have reputations to keep up. He’s gonna need some immediate help, and I live the closest. 

|Ann: Gotcha. Tell him we’re wishing him the best. 

|Ren: I’m sorry everyone. I should’ve known this was going to happen. 

|Makoto: It's not your fault Ren. What happened was completely unpredictable. 

Ren didn’t respond. He just stared at the phone in silence. For all he knew, it was. It was his idea to take Okumura with him. And Madarame’s murder... they haven’t discussed the details yet, but he had a gut feeling. 

Did breaking Akechi’s phone really work?  Did he kill Madarame out of pure spite? 

He had no way of knowing if this was the truth. In fact, he didn’t even want it to be the truth. But deep down, he fe lt that , as the leader,  it had to be his fault  somehow . 

He always hated it when good things just fell apart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally! After months, I'm back in! College hasn't been as busy as I thought it'd be recently, so I'm gonna be updating this more, even if it's a *bit* inconsistent. The Confession Results arc has begun, and I can't wait to get into this again. Thanks everyone for reading!


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